On September 5-6, AI at Wharton hosted its second annual Business and Generative AI Workshop, gathering more than 150 experts on Wharton’s San Francisco campus to explore the next wave of this transformative technology. Sponsored by Accenture, the Workshop showcased groundbreaking research and innovations in the rapidly evolving field of generative AI, and attendees explored the latest advancements in its applications across various industries. Attendees heard from more than 60 speakers over the two-day event, each of whom brought novel research and leading insights into the application of generative AI across a range of industries and sectors. Conversations ranged from AI’s impact on generated content and online reviews to e-commerce worker performance and software development.  In the aggregate, these presentations underscored the idea that AI is not simply a technological advancement, but a transformative force reshaping industries, economies, and leadership.

Bridging the Skill Gap

Erik Brynjolfsson, the Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki Professor at Stanford University, and Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI, delivered the Workshop’s opening keynote. Exploring the transformative power of AI on the economy and workforce, his talk emphasized that AI is the most significant technology of our era, not only because of its pervasiveness, but because it is a General Purpose Technology (GPT)—an acronym he humorously noted has been repurposed by AI researchers.

Brynjolfsson offered a powerful real-world example of how generative AI is transforming industries even at this early stage. In research he conducted with Lindsay Raymond and Daniel Lee, the team examined how the AI solutions company Cresta effectively implemented custom AI models into their call centers. Brynjolfsson shared, “the AI didn’t replace the agents; it augmented them.” By providing call center agents with immediate, accurate, and company-specific answers to their callers’ questions, this augmentation improved overall productivity by 14%. Perhaps most importantly, it had the most profound impact on less-skilled workers, whose performance improved by 30-35%. Brynjolfsson emphasized how AI is helping to “close the gap” between less-skilled and highly skilled workers, challenging the traditional paradigm of skill-biased technical change: “It was the least-skilled workers who benefited the most, not the most-skilled workers.”

The AI Clock is Already Ticking

Later in the Workshop, Erika James, Dean of the Wharton School and Reliance Professor of Management and Private Enterprise, joined James Crowley (W’96), Global Products Industry Practices Chair at Accenture, in a conversation about shaping our collective AI future. Together, the pair examined the vital importance of our current AI moment, as it represents the best and maybe only opportunity we will have to set the ground rules for how business, schools, and society at large engage with these tools.

To meet the moment, The Wharton School launched Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative (WAIAI) earlier this summer. “The mission of [WAIAI] is to become the academic authority on the application of AI and analytics to fuel business innovation and to positively impact society,” said Dean James. “I have responsibility for ensuring that the students we educate have access and opportunity to jobs and roles once they leave our institutions.”

Crowley, who described AI as “the most ubiquitous and humanizing” technological wave since the internet, reiterated James’ emphasis on needing to get involved with the technology at this early, developmental stage. He stressed the next 12-to-36 months represent a “moment of truth” for organizations to leverage AI and reinvent their operations. He highlighted Accenture’s significant investment in AI, with $3 billion allocated to the development of AI solutions, reflecting the company’s commitment to helping clients embrace AI to enhance their performance.

Dean James also brought attention to the human side of AI’s impact, asking how organizations can manage the workforce disruptions that come with automation and AI.

To that point, Crowley acknowledged that only a small percentage of companies currently have robust AI governance frameworks, noting that responsible AI usage is critical for both ethical reasons and business success. He highlighted the importance of bias testing, compliance checks, and the need for companies to go beyond just having AI governance principles.